G Watch

Android was once the darling of the open source community, though you'd be forgiven for forgetting that - these days its commercial elements seem to be all that make the news. One developer is hoping that community can save the smartwatch, or at the very least, breathe a little new life into existing designs. Florent Revest, a French computer science student, released the 1.0 alpha version of AsteroidOS today. It's ready to run on multiple Android Wear devices: the original LG G Watch, the Watch Urbane, the Asus ZenWatch 2, and the Sony Smartwatch 3.

There are a few things to keep in mind. First off, these units are refurbished. Second, shipping is restricted to only a few continents. You will have the best luck in Australia, Europe, and North America.

Interested in Android Wear, but don't want to drop the cash on a $350 Urbane? You can get a G Watch for $50 right now. The original LG G Watch is almost a year old, and there are much better watches out there, but this is a killer deal.

We now have confirmation that Android Wear 5.1.1 has started to reach LG's G Watch and G Watch R today. Though most users are still being told they are up to date, a select few have been lucky enough to be chosen for the first hours of the rollout.

Thanks to tipster Kevin for the G Watch R screenshot and to Frank Barten for the G Watch image.

For those who are unfamiliar, OS updates tend to first go to a very small portion of users, around 1%, for a period that ranges from a few hours to a couple of days.

If you're still waiting for that Android Wear 5.1.1 update, don't worry! It's coming. Eventually. Probably. We hope. It might even be coming very soon now (really!), because Google's posted an update on its product forums officially announcing the update there. That post also contains the same list of Wear devices getting Wi-Fi support in the update that we'd seen previously, and it's unchanged. The Moto 360, Sony Smartwatch 3, and Samsung Gear Live will all get Wi-Fi. The Watch Urbane ships with the feature out of the box. Sony confirmed this a while back, as did Motorola. Samsung never issued a comment that I can locate.

It was just over a year ago that we first caught wind of Android Wear. At the same time, we were introduced to the G Watch, which would be the first Wear device—released alongside the Samsung Gear Live—to be sold to the general public. Now, with the addition of the G Watch Urbane and a permanent price drop for the G Watch R, the original G Watch is headed out of the Google Store.

There was no telling exactly when this would happen, but it is no surprise that it comes now. First of all, there is just a lot of LG in the Android Wear section of the Google Store right now.

Target's Cartwheel app serves as a way for the company to offer discounts and get you into its stores. Today you can get the LG G Watch for 50% off. Since the retailer is selling the smartwatch for $160, that brings the price down to $80.

This offer is only valid in stores, as Target isn't even selling the G Watch online. You must sign up to redeem the coupon and then scan the Cartwheel barcode at the register. The offer expires May 9th, but it's only valid while supplies last.

Since there's a good chance many of you have never heard of Target's Cartwheel app, I'll include a link below.

Apple has spared no opportunity to advertise how customizable its debut smartwatch is, thanks to the promised number of bands wearers will be able to swap in and out. Unsurprisingly Google wants to take some of the wind out of those sails. The company has taken this moment to highlight a set of straps available for various Android Wear devices from the likes of Clockwork Synergy, E3 Supply Co., and Worn & Wound.

If the LG Watch Urbane just isn't fancy enough for you, the manufacturer is going to up the stakes. LG just announced the Watch Urbane LTE on its home turf of South Korea, ostensibly to have something to compete with Samsung's Gear S. The Watch Urbane LTE includes the capability to make voice calls, essentially turning it into a wrist-mounted cell phone. It would be the first Android Wear device with stand-alone voice capability... if it were running Android at all. According to LG's (translated) press release, the Urbane LTE is using a proprietary operating system, just like the Tizen-based Gear S.